‘Honor Our Heroes’

Brady selected as 2018 Grand Marshal

Hugh Brady 1943 MANISTIQUE – The 2018 Manistique Fourth of July parade is themed “Honor Our Heroes” and sitting at the lead will be this year’s parade grand marshal, Hugh Brady – a veteran, father, and long-time resident.

According to Paul Walker, member of the Manistique Fourth of July Committee, Brady was selected as the 2018 Grand Marshal for his service in World War II.

“We picked Mr. Hugh as our theme this year is ‘Honor Our Heroes’ for the parade,” he said. “Further, there are only 620,000 WWII vets left out of 16 million Americans who served in World War II. Most are in their mid-90s and we so appreciate their service to our country along with being known as the greatest generation.

Lastly, we are bringing the Vietnam Memorial Wall here in early August and want our community to know Schoolcraft County is home to many veterans who sacrificed so much,” he added.

The former Brady’s Resort, owned by Hugh Brady, is shown. Courtesy photo Hugh Brady was born Oct. 18, 1922 in West Virginia, the youngest of six boys born to Dorothy and Dennis Brady. He also had a younger sister.

The family moved to Ohio in 1927 while Brady was in grade school. Shortly after arriving to their new state, Brady’s father died, leaving his mother to raise seven children just before the onset of the Great Depression. Hugh’s older brother, George, gained employment to assist the family.

Brady graduated from Holland High School in 1940. From there, he worked for a lumber company before being drafted into the U.S. Army in 1943. By 1946, Brady and his best friend, Bob Curtis, were discharged from the army. Curtis purchased property in the Upper Peninsula from a man who would become Brady’s father-in-law and ended up marrying one of his daughters, Lois.

Hugh Brady is shown at his former work place – the Thompson Fish Hatchery. Courtesy photo When Curtis and Lois had their first baby, Lois’s sister, Audrey, visited to assist them. At that point, Brady said he met Audrey and became “hooked”. The couple married in 1952 and planned their move from Ohio to the U.P.

“It’s a little different in Ohio, and I like to hunt and fish, so life’s been good to me here,” Brady said. “I got more than I ever would have if I stayed in Ohio. This area’s been real good to us.”

Brady worked three seasons at his fatherin law’s resort. By 1955, Brady and Audrey purchased the old Wagon Wheel Resort on Island and Dodge Lakes, renaming it “Brady’s Resort”. The couple demolished many of the existing cabins, keeping only a few to rent as they built six new buildings.

Hugh Brady is shown with his late wife, Audrey. Courtesy photo “Audrey ran the resort – I was just the garbage man,” Brady said. “I would come home from work at the hatchery and haul the garbage every night.”

In addition to the resort, Brady helped raise three sons and also worked full-time at the Thompson State Fish Hatchery. He was employed there from 1958 until 1984.

In 1967, Brady began constructing the family home, finishing by 1968.

During the years operating the resort, Brady said he and Audrey made numerous lifelong friends.

“That was the most rewarding part of the business – the friends that we made,” he said, adding that the resort closed in 2001. Audrey passed away in 2013 and his son, Brian, passed in April of this year.

According to Dwight Brady, Hugh’s son, his father’s work ethic is admirable.

“Despite building six cabins and a new home while working a full-time job, dad somehow found time to play ball with me when I was young,” he said. “He and my mom both seemed to have boundless energy as they built their life together. Even at 95 years old, dad still drives into town and does his own shopping and is quite independent. He was and still a remarkable person.

I am so proud of dad and my mom, not just for what they accomplished together, but because they were willing to risk walking away from good paying jobs in northeast Ohio to start a whole new life together in the U.P.,” he continued. “I’m so glad they took that chance and gave me and my two older brothers a great place to grow up.”

Dwight said it is an honor to see his father selected as grand marshal.

“He has been a part of the Manistique community for 63 years. He is not only a hero for serving in WWII, he is a hero for surviving the depths of the Great Depression after his father died in 1929,” he said. “He, like so many from that era, rose from utter poverty to build incredible life stories. The perseverance, determination and commitment of the ‘Greatest Generation’ should be model for all of us to follow.”